Mail-pouch-transferring apparatus.



' J. W. PEPPLE. M-AIL POUCH TRANSFERRING APPARATUS. APPLICATION rum APR. 9, 1910. RENEWED mac. 2, 1910.

996,517; Patented June 27,1911;

JOHN w. PEPPLE,

OF HILLSBORO,

EEK).

TEXAS.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented J une 27, 1911.

Application filed April 9, 1910. Serial No. 554,426. Renewed December 2, 1910. Serial No. 595,326.

To all whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN W. PnrrLn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Hillsboro, in the county of Hill and State of Texas, have invented new and useful Improvements in Mail Pouch Transferring Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in mail pouch transferring apparatuses and more particularly it involves an improvement on the construction shown in my U. S. Patent, No. 942,214, granted. December 7, 1909.

The present invention aims to improve the construction aforesaid by the provision of means for securely holding the mail pouch supporting frame or device against accidental displacement from any one of the three positions which it may occupy; and

by the provision of other structural detailsto be particularly specified.

An embodiment of the invention is illus trated in the accompanying drawings, wherein- Figure 1 is a perspective view of a mail pouch transferring apparatus constructed in accordance with the present invention; Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof; and Fig. 3

is a detail perspective view of a locking plate to be hereinafter specifically described.

Similar characters of reference designate corresponding parts through the several views. I

The type of construction shown in my patent referred to, involves a stationary crane, and an arm, mounted upon the car and coacting with the crane in the exchange of mail pouches. The crane comprises a post, as 1, supported upon a suitable platform, as 2, and carrying a mail pouch receiving device, as 3, and a mail pouch supporting device, as 4:. The receiving device 3 consists of a horizontal bar, having its central portion of flattened construction, as at 5, and rigidly secured at a central point to the post 1. The bar 3 is provided at its ends with outwardly opening hooks, as 6, which constitute the mail pouch receiving means. Obviously one hook has operation to strip a mail pouch from a car moving in one direction and the other hook has operation to strip the mail pouch from a car moving in the opposite direction. It will be observed that the bar 5 is rigidly held an is n nadjustable. This renders it impossible for the operator to make any mistake in positioning the mail pouch receiving hooks.

The mail pouch supporting device 4.0011- sists of a frame which includes a vertical bar 7, having at its ends outwardly projecting alined arms, as 8, which extend through the rings of a mail pouch to be delivered to the car. The frame 4: is mounted for horizontal swinging movement and accordingly the bar 7 is journaled in suitable bearings, as 9,which are provided on the post 1. Thebar 7 also extends through a vertical groove intervening between two parallel cleats, as 10, secured to the post 1 and to which the flattened central portion 5 of the bar 3 is directly attached. The arm which projects from the car and coacts with the crane is designated by the numeral 11 and may be mounted in any suitable manner (not shown), whereby it may be extended from the car or withdrawn into or against the side of the car. Said arm is provided at its outer end with a rearwardly directed hook, as 12, and with two arms, as 13, which roject in opposite directions from the 1100 12 and constitute a mail pouch supporting device. In operation, the mail pouch A which is supported by the arms 8, is engaged by the hook 12 and stripped from the arms 8, being thus transferred from the crane to the car, while at the same time the mail pouch B which is supported by the arms 13, is engaged by either of the hooks 6 in accordance with the direction in which the car is traveling and stripped from said arms 13, being thus transferred from the car to the crane.

It will be apparent that prior to the transferring operation, the mail pouch supporting frame 4 occupies a central position, i. 6., a position in which it projects forwardly from the post, but that after the transferring operation, the mail pouch supporting frame is moved to a position in which it projects at one side of the post. If the car is traveling in one direction the frame 4 will, after the transferring operation, be positioned at one side of the post and if the car is traveling in an opposite direction, the frame 4 will be positioned at the opposite side of the post. Inasmuch as the proper positioning of the frame 1 is important to the efficient operation of the apparatus and inasmuch as said frame, with the pouch carried thereby, would be liable to be moved adjacent either of the arms 8.

from a particular position, as the consequence of wind pressure against the pouch or for other reasons, if no provision to guard against this were made, means is provided for holding the frame 4 in any one of its three positions aforesaid and such means is preferably of the following construction. j

The arms 8 are preferably integral with the bar 7 and are of curved form. They also have a flattened cross section and by virtue of this construction, coupled with the use of properly tempered metal, said arms have a material degree of resiliency. This inherent resiliency of the arms is utilized to cause them, or at least one of them, to cooperate with a locking plate, shown in detail in Fig; 3, and designated generally by the numeral 14. The plate 14 is provided at its rear edge with a flange, as 15, which is attached directly to the post 1 and at each side of the flange 15 and projecting in opposite directions therefrom, with a lug l6. Said plate is preferably of semi-disk shape and has its curved flange, as 17, arranged in an offset plane, the said offset flange 17 terminating short of the lug 16, whereby recesses, as 18, are provided. A recess, as 19, is provided centrally of the flange 17. The wa ls of the recess 19 are, however, more in clinedthan the walls of the recesses 18, for a purpose which will presently appear. One or a pair of plates 14 may be employed. As shown in the drawings only one plate is employed, and this plate may be positioned As shown, it is positioned adjacent the upper arm 8.

By reason of the resilient nature of the arms, it will be apparent that the particular arm adjacent to which the plate 14 is mounted, in this instance the upper arm, will, in the central position of the frame 4, engage in the recess 19 and will, in either of the positions of the frame 4 at the side of the post, engage in a corresponding recess 18. By virtue of such engagement the frame 4 will be held securely against accidental displacement, due to wind pressure or other causes. The recess 19 has its walls of such inclination that they do not interfere with the movement of the frame 4 to either side of the post at the proper time, 2'. 6., at the time when the mail pouch A is engaged by the arm 12 and stripped from said crane, but at the same time the inclination of the walls of the recess 19 is of a degree suflicient to hold the frame against accidental displacement. The walls of the recesses 18 are perpendicular, and the frame 4 cannot be moved from its position at either side of the post until the upper arm 8 in the present instance, is manually disengaged from the recess 18 adjacent thereto. This is, of course, accomplished by the operator when he places a mail pouch upon the frame.

The offset flange 17 is of advantage in that it provides a braking surface upon which the arm 8 rides during the movement of the frame 4. As a consequence of this braking action the movement of said frame is kept from being too sudden or too quick, but on the contrary is caused to be at a comparatively slow speed. Hence the vibrations and jars are reduced to a minimum and the eflect of such as are necessarily incident to the operation of the device is rendered practically negligible. The central flattened portion 5 of the bar 3 is also of advantage in that it provides for simplifying the construction and manner of mounting of said bar and serves also as a keeper for the bar 7, supplementary in this respect to the bearings 9.

Having fully described my invention I claim:

1. In a mail pouch delivering and receiving apparatus, in combination, a crane including a post, a mail pouch supporting frame mounted on the post and including a journaled vertical bar and an arm projecting angularly from the bar and constructed for engagement in a ring of the mail pouch and a plate secured to the post adjacent the arm and provided with spaced recesses, the arm being constructed for interlocking engagement in the recesses whereby it may be held against accidental displacement and having such engagement without axial movement of the bar, in combination with an arm carried by a car and having means to strip a mail pouch from the frame.

2. In a mail pouch delivering and receiving apparatus, in combination, a crane including a post and a mail pouch supporting frame mounted on the post for horizontal swinging movement and having a resilient arm, an arm carried by a car and having means to strip a mail pouch from the frame and a plate secured to the post adjacent the resilient arm and provided wit-h recesses in which the resilient arm may engage tothereby hold the frame against displacement from a particular posit-ion.

S. In a mail pouch delivering and receiving apparatus, in combination, a crane including a post and a mail pouch supporting frame mounted on the post for horizontal movement and having a pair of'mail pouch support-ing arms, at least one of which is resilient, an arm carried by a car and having means to strip a mail pouch from the frame, and a plate secured to the post adjacent the resilient arm and provided with a braking flange, recessed at different points, the resilient arm engaging in the recesses of the flange to thereby hold the frame against displacement from a particular posit-ion.

4. In a mail pouch delivering and receiving apparatus, in combination; a crane comprising a post; a mail pouch supporting frame mounted for horizontal swinging movement on the post and including a journaled vertical bar and mail pouch supporting arms projecting from the bar; and a mail pouch stripping bar extending transversely and having a flattened central portion attached to the post and extending over the said vertical bar; means associated with a car for stripping a mail pouch from the frame; and means associated with a car for supporting a mail pouch for engagement by said stripping bar.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

JOHN W. PEPPLE.

Witnesses:

MENDEY YOUNG, WM. A. FIELDS.

pies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

